Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0026850 (muscular dystrophy)
 5,870 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Muscular dystrophy is a severe degenerative disorder of skeletal muscle characterized by progressive muscle weakness. One subgroup of this disease is caused by a defect in the gene encoding one of the components of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex, resulting in a significant disruption of membrane integrity and/or stability and, consequently, a sustained increase in the cytosolic Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)). In the present study, we demonstrate that muscular dystrophy is ameliorated in two animal models, dystrophin-deficient mdx mice and delta-sarcoglycan-deficient BIO14.6 hamsters by dominant-negative inhibition of the transient receptor potential cation channel, TRPV2, a principal candidate for Ca(2+)-entry pathways. When transgenic (Tg) mice expressing a TRPV2 mutant in muscle were crossed with mdx mice, the [Ca(2+)](i) increase in muscle fibers was reduced by dominant-negative inhibition of endogenous TRPV2. Furthermore, histological, biochemical and physiological indices characterizing dystrophic pathology, such as an increased number of central nuclei and fiber size variability/fibrosis/apoptosis, elevated serum creatine kinase levels, and reduced muscle performance, were all ameliorated in the mdx/Tg mice. Similar beneficial effects were also observed in the muscles of BIO14.6 hamsters infected with adenovirus carrying mutant TRPV2. We propose that TRPV2 is a principal Ca(2+)-entry route leading to a sustained [Ca(2+)](i) increase and muscle degeneration, and that it is a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of muscular dystrophy.
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PMID:Dominant-negative inhibition of Ca2+ influx via TRPV2 ameliorates muscular dystrophy in animal models. 1905 39

Transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are expressed in almost every human tissue, including the heart and vasculature. Most are permeable to Ca(2+) and play unique roles as multifunctional cellular sensors. Their involvement in many fundamental cell functions (eg, contraction, proliferation, and cell death) has made investigating their roles in human disease an urgent priority for medical science. This review presents an overview of current knowledge about the pathological role of TRP channels in heart disease and highlights some TRP channels with anticipated roles in disease. Evidence suggests that (a) upregulation of TRPC channels is involved in the development of cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure; (b) TRPC1, TRPC6, and TRPV2 play a role in the pathogenesis of cardiomyopathy associated with muscular dystrophy; (c) TRPC6 or TRPM4 is involved in the delayed after-depolarization; (d) TRPP2 is involved in the normal development of the interventricular and interatrial septa; and (e) neuronal TRPV1 acts as a detector of pain-producing stimuli. Ultimately, TRP channels might become novel pharmacological targets in the treatment of human heart disease.
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PMID:The pathological role of transient receptor potential channels in heart disease. 1920 4

The transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channel family is composed of twenty-seven channel proteins that are ubiquitously expressed in the human body. The TRPV (vanilloid) subfamily has been a recent target of investigation within the cardiovascular field. TRPV1, which is sensitive to heat as well as vanilloids, is the best characterized TRPV channel and is the namesake for the subfamily that includes six members. Research into the function of TRPV2 has suggested that it plays an important role in cardiovascular function. Over the last twenty years a greater understanding of the differences among the TRPV channels has allowed for more precise experimentation and has opened various translational opportunities. TRPV2 has been found to be a both a mechanosensor and a mediator of calcium handling and has been found to play important roles in healthy and diseased cardiomyocytes. These roles have been translated into clinical studies in patients with muscular dystrophy (both agonism and antagonism) as well as in patients with cardiomyopathy and heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. Its role as a structural protein has also been elucidated, though the clinical significance of this finding has yet to be established. Despite the clinical progress that has been made there is still a need for large, prospective randomized studies with TRPV2 channel agonists and antagonists in order to bring these basic and translational science findings to the bedside.
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PMID:TRPV2 channel-based therapies in the cardiovascular field. Molecular underpinnings of clinically relevant therapies. 3256 82